Starkey town board 05/06/10

Meeting: Starkey town board met for approximately one and three quarters hours on May 6.Attendance: All members of the town board were present. No members of the public were in the audience.Action: Highway repairs were discussed with councilman Bill Holgate suggesting the town wait to do some of the work until the state budget is passed. He said only two counties in the state are going ahead without confirmation of funding.Discussion without action: Supervisor Richard Burcaw read a letter of thanks from AARP volunteer Ed Seus for use of the town hall for preparation of town residents tax returns. Seus said dozens of returns were prepared at the site during this first year at the town hall. The program is offered through AARP.
• Burcaw updated the town board about the proposed road preservation law.
• The issue of the salt barn was discussed. Burcaw said grant money for the facilities has dried up. Highway Superintendent Louis Seeley said the Town of Hornby built a 50 by 100 foot barn for $60,000, doing the work themselves.
• Updates to the town zoning law were discussed. Code enforcement officer Brian Quackenbush said the planning board will be discussing steep slopes. Quackenbush said changes in the zoning map are marked on the map in the town hall. He would like to get an official drawing from Yates Soil and Water Conservation District.
• Councilman Fred Shoemaker discussed a document prepared by New York State Department of Environmental Conservation on the topic of sludge. He said he found something wrong in the document concerning the need for a record on the property deed regarding where sludge is being dumped. Shoemaker said his concern is if anyone buys or wants to build on the land they need to know about the sludge. Holgate suggested the matter be brought to the attention of the village with a reminder the information needs to be on the property deed.
• Town Clerk Sue Crans spoke to the board about birth certificates. She said especially in the case of home births when a midwife is not in attendance the birth of a baby must be verified. Crans said the state may be doing away with the statewide dog licensing program. She said if this happens, the town would have to purchase tags and send out notices to dog owners.Upcoming meetings: June 10 at 7 p.m. in the town hall on Seneca Street in Dundee.